By Kumar Saurav
The way consumers interact with brands is changing constantly which compels marketers to craft unique strategies that tap into all the channels where their potential customers might be present. Promoting brand messages across a single channel will prove to be ineffective and fail to deliver a comprehensive customer experience. Cross-channel marketing leverages multiple platforms and advertising avenues that takes every customer touchpoint into account and creates a cohesive customer journey.
This strategic digital marketing technique integrates both online and offline marketing campaigns. Cross-channel marketing allows marketers to optimise their messaging across diverse channels fostering a personalised customer experience. People-based marketing can be utilised for this purpose to create a holistics and personalised experience for your target audience.
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Marketers can use a combination of marketing channels depending upon their target audience, like website, social media, push notifications, blog posts, email marketing, mobile applications, etc.
Key Benefits Of Cross-Channel Marketing
In the ever-evolving realm of digital marketing, there are numerous ways to interact with and engage with your target audience. Marketers can get a 360-degree understanding of their potential buyers which will consecutively aid customer acquisition and retention alongside benefitting retargeting efforts.
Here are a few reasons why brands should hone in on cross channel marketing.
- Enhance Customer Experience
A holistic customer journey is the cornerstone of a successful digital marketing campaign. A Forrester report suggests that cross channel marketing optimises the marketing budget by 15-20% by accurately tweaking marketing strategies in accordance with customer tactics or influence. Shoppers buy from more than one channel which makes it crucial to create a unified messaging across all the platforms which they resort to along their customer journey, including both online and offline channels.
Widespread visibility across multiple channels will spark curiosity related to your brand which will eventually augment brand awareness. WordStream report indicates that YouTube ads are a major contributor to brand awareness. Cross-channel marketing can also boost Google searches for brands by 400%, according to studies.
This marketing tactic helps delve into a wider audience with lower monetary risks. Adopting a single channel approach will prove detrimental to the ROI (Return on Investment) given that audiences are present on diverse channels. Contrary to this, a cross-channel approach would yield a better ROI, given that it will reach more prospects, which will subsequently boost chances of conversion.
Studies indicate that people who are connected with brands on multiple channels are more likely to purchase from them on a recurring basis in contrast to those who are connected over a single channel. Consistent brand messaging across channels promotes a coherent brand image which resonates with the target audience and transforms them into brand loyal customers.
Role Of Mobile Marketing In Cross-Channel Marketing
Mobile has entirely transformed the way in which customers interact with brands and make buying decisions. The primary reason behind the surge of mobile marketing is its ability to reach potential customers on-the-go.
Mobile Enhances Personalisation
Reaching out to customers when they are interested in something or providing them with solutions instantly that caters to the search intent plays a pivotal role in customer journey. Hyper-personalised messaging will help grab the attention of the consumer and increase the likelihood of them interacting with your brand by clicking on the CTA (call-to-action) button, subscribing to an email list, etc.
Location-Based Marketing
Location-based marketing, for instance sending out vouchers, coupons, etc to customers when they are in store, can provide additional value to them and deliver a unique brand experience. Leveraging geolocation for targeted messaging that is contextually relevant to the users is instrumental in creating a cohesive cross-channel strategy.
Gather Valuable Insights Through Analytics
Analytics help marketers get a deep insight into consumer preferences and behaviour across channels. Tools to track customer interactions, measure engagement, and attribute conversions across various touchpoints can help marketers take data-driven actions for optimising campaigns and maximising the return on investment.
Better Content Distribution
Mobile marketers can deliver valuable, consistent and relevant content to their consumers by sharing responsive and apt landing pages through apps, social media, websites, etc. Doing this, however, necessitates a high level of precision, given that faulty execution could result in high bounce rates and missed opportunity to direct the traffic to other channels.
Prior to launching a mobile marketing campaign, it is crucial to have a well-defined goal and ensure that the mobile messages align with the broader marketing objectives. A consistent tone should be implemented, that is in line with your brand messaging and value proposition. Optimising mobile experience includes boosting the efficiency of mobile-based web pages and landing pages to ensure a seamless customer experience. Last but not the least, it is of paramount significance to track and analyse data collected from various sources like email, social media, websites, etc. to comprehend what your target customer wants and use the data to tailor mobile strategies based on context, location and stage of the funnel.
The author is the chief strategy officer at AdCounty Media
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